Soda Can Tab Guitar Strap – Upcycle Progress Update

This past week, I was able to source all the materials and tools I believe I will need to create my soda can tab guitar strap. The materials/tools are as follows:

1. Soda Can Tabs – Main aesthetic material
2. Spool of Black Nylon String – Guiding lines for first step of assembly 
3. Black Paracord – Used to add strength to the strap
4. Butane Torch – Used to melt the end of the string and paracord so it is easier to thread through the tabs
5. Old Guitar Strap – Will be used either as a base or for the attaching parts
6. Old Black Shirt – Will be used as a buffer between my shoulder and the tabs
7. Scissors – Used to cut the string and paracord

Of the gathered materials, I purchased 1000 tabs and the string for a total of $20. I sourced the paracord from a friend and had the rest of the materials/tools on hand.

Before diving into creating the final product, I decided to make a shorter “prototype” in order to finalize the design. Specifically, I wanted to get a feel for weaving the string and paracord through the tabs. For my previous blog post, I thought I had come up with a good way to assemble the strap, but I spent nearly half an hour trying to assemble more than just a single “link” before realizing what I was doing wasn’t going to work. After a bit of brainstorming and experimenting, I landed on the following pattern. 

I have yet to decide whether I want to use the old guitar strap as a base or for parts, but I am leaning towards the latter. I like the idea of the soda can tab guitar strap being what is actually holding up my guitar. This is the main reason for using the paracord, as its tensile strength is a lot higher than the thin nylon string I purchased. I tested the strength of my prototype by hanging a 10 pound weight from it, as the average guitar weighs in at 8 pounds. The prototype held up very well, so I am confident that if I choose to go this route, the strap will be more than sufficient to hold a guitar. I am still unsure how I would add the attaching hardware directly to the soda can tab strap, which is the only reason I am still considering using the old guitar strap as a base. 

The first 25% or so of the prototype took around an hour to figure out, but once I got it down, the rest took around 30 minutes. I still need to think through how I might add the attaching hardware to the strap, which I plan to figure out this weekend. I imagine it will take me another hour to think through, which leaves plenty of time to begin the final assembly this weekend as well. With all this in mind, I plan to have the final assembly done by next Wednesday giving me 4 days to test, work out any kinks, and make it look its best.